John Eimen, child actor from 'Leave it to Beaver,' dies at 76

[Fiendish Thingy]

2. That's quite a lengthy obituary for someone who had a steady, but overall unremarkable career as a child actor

Does anybody remember this guy for his acting? I am a big Leave It To Beaver fan, as well as Twlight Zone and other classic 60’s shows, and I don’t remember him.

I’m sure his friends and family in his community remember him fondly, but what motivated the USA today editor to devote so much space to this obit? Was it in the print edition? And if so, what stories did it displace that deserved to be covered?

(That last question is the key one- this post isn’t really about whether Eimen deserved a lengthy obituary in a national paper, but what the national media directs its, and our, attention towards, and more importantly, away from)